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Louder than Beyond
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We talk all things Louder Than Life and Bourbon & Beyond on this week's Access Louisville podcast.
Special Projects Editor Allison Stines and Editor-in-Chief Shea Van Hoy join the show to discuss the massive crowds, how the festival continues to evolve and the impact the events have on Louisville by bringing hundreds of thousands of visitors to the city during September. We're probably a week or so out from knowing exactly what attendance looked like for the festivals.
The two festivals are put on by Danny Wimmer Presents and have had a major impact over the years. Louder Than Life was expected to have an estimated economic impact of $24.1 million, while Bourbon & Beyond is expected to bring in $13.8 million. According to Louisville Tourism, the two festivals generated an estimated $43 million in local economic impact in 2025. So if the estimates above hold true, they would be off that figure slightly at $37.9 million this year.
We also chat about how Louisville's food scene is represented at the festival grounds. And of course, we swap stories about memorable performances, favorite festival experiences, standout food and drink options and more.
On the show this week, we also talk about Danny Wimmer Presents commitment to keeping the events in Louisville for the next 10 years.
Access Louisville, sponsored by Baird, is a weekly podcast from Louisville Business First. You can listen in the player above. You can also follow it on popular podcast services including Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
We've got Louisville's big festival season upon us from louder than life to bourbon and beyond. We're gonna get into it next on Access Louable. Thanks for joining us. My name is David Mann, and joining us today are Allison Stein and Shea Van Hoy. Hey folks, Access Louisville is a weekly podcast from Louisville Business First. Each week we bring you the latest news and plenty of sharp opinions on what's going on here in Louisville, Kentucky. This podcast is sponsored by Baird. Discover the difference Baird can make in your financial life at rwbaird.com slash Louisville. We'll hear more from Baird later in the show. But let's get into some news, and I've got our two biggest, I guess, music journalists here with us today. You guys have been covering Bourbon and Beyond and Louder Than Life for years now. Usually it goes in that order. This year it goes Louder Than Life, then Bourbon and Beyond. But uh yeah, let's just get into it. Uh, you've been covering it, you know, covering Louder than Life this last weekend. Uh for someone who's not paying attention, I guess, how big have these festivals gotten?
SPEAKER_00Well, uh Louder Than Life had over 200 bands uh play, which is to me on seven stages. That's just crazy.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, it is.
SPEAKER_03And the footprint too. Yeah. Yes. How many Allison has a good stat, and that's the miles walked.
SPEAKER_00Uh I went out all four days. I'm kind of still recovering. Uh, but I walked about 23 miles. That's good for you.
SPEAKER_02Like four days to me.
SPEAKER_03Sounds crazy. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I did I did three. I took Friday off. Um, you know, it's over 200,000 people now. So I think they were expecting 240. I don't think they've uh released the official total, and they don't ever release day single day totals. But if you do the math, that's 60,000 more give or take a day. Um it feels that way. I mean, the foot the footprint is is massive, so you do get some like crowds leaving and coming for stage, but it was nothing like the bottlenecks at the old footprint, uh, where people going from the main stages to side stages, it got really, really congested. And um, that that doesn't quite happen as as much anymore. It's more of a square than sort of an L, if that makes sense.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I see what you're saying. I I think there's I didn't really run into too much uh as far as bottlenecks, you know. I feel like there's they've got a plenty of room. It's just it's so the stages are so spread apart. But I only went for one night, so I'm the uh I'm the poser in the room. Um let's see here. Were there any big changes this year compared to previous year so far?
SPEAKER_03Um, you know, I uh was the um the stage that uh knock loose played on was new, right?
SPEAKER_00Yes, there was no stage in Kentucky Kingdom this year. Last year there was one in Kentucky Kingdom, and so this year it was moved out uh closer to Broadbent Arena.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And they also had more indoor space last year, right? Did I hear that?
SPEAKER_03No, maybe well there's this year there was merch in Broadbent, and I don't know if there was in past years. Oh okay. So the main merch area is in the expo hall, and on Thursday, well, it was really hot all weekend, obviously. I'm sure we'll talk more about that. But on Thursday, right when I got there at like four, I went into the the main merch area, which is in one of the expo hall wings, and it was just packed. People in the merch line, but people just hanging out. Yes. Um, but I think what a lot of people didn't discover was that broadband had their AC on and was open, and you could sit in the seats if you wanted to. I didn't go in there, but I saw photos. So people were taking naps, cooling off, and then there was a secondary merch area in there. So I can't remember if they did that before.
SPEAKER_00I don't think that was open last year. I know it was so hot this year. I'm so glad. My husband and his friends went out to see Iron Maiden on Thursday, and so they spent some time in Broadband Arena to cool off.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, that's smart. The fact that they left the seats open and stuff like that.
SPEAKER_03The V I will say the the VIP uh like media has access to sort of the mid-level VIP, it's not the Angels Envy top shelf, which is like you know, seats and all that. Um last year that and it's not just media, it's people that buy it used to be called mint VIP. I don't think it is anymore, but on one of the main stages now you couldn't cut across near the stage. It was fenced off. So there was like little footprint changes like that, but the general, like, you know, the most of the food and drink booths were in the same place, and the main stages are the same thing.
SPEAKER_02You said you recognized a few bartenders from last year.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, the media yeah, the media area, yeah, for sure. Um, and then you know, some of like of course, like island noodles is always there, which they're like the festival noodles, and uh, you know, there but then there were we'll talk about local businesses later, but there are local businesses out as well.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I mean when it comes to the heat, I got so lucky. I went on Friday night, which is the night that it stormed for like two hours, or I would say it rained for a few hours before um before the the show I wanted to go to, which was my chemical romance. Um and that just cooled it off. And so uh so I missed all the the big heat.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I think that'll be I mean that'll be the l lingering, like you know, I don't remember years like, but always remember the Pearl Jam year at Bourbon and Beyond just because the crowd was so massive. Um like this year will be the year it was just inseparable. Insanely hot.
SPEAKER_02I can't believe how hot it was. I know, yeah. Some of the uh I think what heat indexes in the 100s this year. Yeah, yeah, it's pretty uh pretty miserable. Um, all right. So we just reported recently on the uh impact of September events, and uh especially in in uh in l in like the hotels and and restaurants and that sort of thing. So I guess uh can you put it that into perspective a little bit, you know, how big these uh weekend events have. Um the economic impact isn't out yet, but it's maybe the years past economic impact.
SPEAKER_03Didn't you you were at the says that you have at 40 plus million?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's like 37.9 million was the estimated for the two uh festivals this year.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, and 400,000 folks, I think. Uh louder than in life does draw more people traditionally, and I think will this year. Um it's I think the travel nature of metalheads. I saw on uh our partner DRB had a report that um I think 30 countries people were coming from. Yeah. Um I yeah, uh and I'm sure like you know, some of the like there are bands from France and the UK, and so I'm sure some of those fans are like, I'll use my chance to go see Louisville to go see my favorite band at this huge metal festival. So metalheads travel well for sure.
SPEAKER_02I bet there's a pretty good overlap in metalheads and bourbon fans, too. You know, I think they're probably out there hitting the distilleries and that sort of thing. Um, let's see. So you guys run into any tourist out there, give them any wrecks, that kind of thing?
SPEAKER_03I did. I uh on Saturday, uh there's a shaded area right in front of Freedom Hall, which is really nice to sit and relax in, and they have not only the picnic tables out you can eat on, but like sort of makeshift couches. And I was just cooling off, and I had an extra bottle of water from the media area, and I offered it to this cup cup 20-something couple, and it was her dad, and they were from um they were from Pittsburgh area, and um they got they left when it stormed on Friday. They're like, We're gonna go do something else. And I was like, Oh, where'd you go? And they're like, Oh, we went and played pinball at this place called Zanzibar. And I was like, You went to one of my favorite bars in Louisville Pick. And they said they had such a good time. Um one of they the um one of the the group was uh happy because Jim James was in there that night, but she said she didn't have the courage to go up and talk to him, and I was like, Yeah, he's there a decent amount um if you go there a lot to shows. But she said that they had explained to the owners or someone there that they were from out of town and they'd left louder than life, and there was a there was a Grateful Dead cover band playing that night, and they just gave him wristbands to go back and check out some live music since they got stormed out. So showing some good hospitality, and then I was like, Oh, Mile Wide has a great pinball collection. Yeah, you could go there. And they also went to Logan Street Market, they said, and I really had a good time. So I was like, you guys are like taking a hipster tour. So I gave him some parking tips for the next day. Yeah, yeah, hipster tour. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02So I didn't know Jim James just hung out. You just said that like casually, but I guess he hung up. I've seen him in San Zar a few times.
SPEAKER_03You'll check out bands from time to time. So uh yeah, yeah. So I mean it's just great when people come and are enjoying the city and um you know, always try to be you you see people walking all over, you know, downtown. I live in the highlands, they're walking down Bark Sun Road. Some people stay for both festivals and do stuff in between. So um, that was my main like you know, talking to someone from out of town for for a while.
SPEAKER_00No, I just chit-chatted with some people uh like from Tennessee, and there was somebody from Ohio I was talking to. But other than that, just I really didn't talk to too many people.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, they didn't hit all the cool bars in town, I guess.
SPEAKER_00Now, my husband, he went to uh after Iron Maiden, he went to Guest Room Records on Bardstown Road. They had a record release at midnight for anthrax, and anthrax was their signing, and so he did that after, and he was in line with uh some people they were from out of town, and they were like, Where are the cool places to go? And he's like, I'm in my 50s, I don't know where people go at midnight. I don't know.
SPEAKER_02Guest room records, yeah. They are there. Um, yeah, yeah, man. You guys are uh you're hitting the the late night stuff too. That's crazy. Good for y'all. All right, so yeah, so these are put on by Danny Wimmer Presents and uh Danny Wimmer, they they've locked in these festivals for a while now, and as well as some other business in town, right?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I think this was year one of the 10-year contract, or maybe maybe next year is, but regardless, they signed a 10-year lease agreement for the Expo Center. I wrote about it last year when they when they signed it um with details on how much they're paying for rent and all that stuff. But uh so you know, at least contractually, um a decade more of those two festivals in town, which is great. You know, if you multiply that 40 million, which will probably only go up by 10, you know, you're soon looking at half a billion dollars of economic impact, um, you know, beyond the great visibility for the city. So uh those festivals will be here, but also Danny Wimmer presents as uh they you know, they have a local office here. Um uh Doris Sims runs that here. She's been involved in Louisville tourism for a long time. Um, so they have a local presence and um they're also taking over management of city-owned uh music venue, which is the Iroquois Amphitheater. Uh it's a great venue. They've had some great shows this year. They just had Pixies. They had Pixies River yesterday. Uh I went to see Spoon and the Best earlier this year and someone else, I think. So yeah, they're booking and promoting those shows now. So uh probably just, you know, they just have uh such a wide network of of booking because not only does Danny Wimmer um do festivals here, but he does festivals across the country, including other metal festivals and um, you know, Sonic Temple, I think it's in Ohio. Um so probably that booking power of hey, I'll book you for this festival, and then you come back and play Iroquois next year, or that sort of thing, um, is really helpful for the for the music scene.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, as I understand it, that's how that was part of the My Chemical Romance thing was uh he was signing that band to a couple different festivals.
SPEAKER_03I'm sure Metallica was the same way a few years ago. They played a lot of his festivals.
SPEAKER_00David, speaking of My Chemical Romance, we've been talking about it. I know.
SPEAKER_03You haven't debriefed about the set?
SPEAKER_02No, we we've debriefed. Uh but uh yeah, I'm like I would say I'm I'm a fan of just one of their albums, and it's the Black Parade. And I saw the tour was called Long Live the Black Parade, and I was like, okay, it's 20 years since the Black Parade. They're gonna play that. I knew it was gonna be theatrical. I had no idea like that it was gonna be that level of production. I mean, they had like there was just like actors on stage, they was it was props. Yes, they wheeled out, they wheeled out a podium for him to sing the you know the big hip. Um it's called Welcome to the Black Parade. Um, and uh, and I just as soon as I saw him wheel that podium out, I'm like, he's gonna sing from that podium, isn't he?
SPEAKER_00It was amazing. And see, I really didn't know what to expect, and so I was just I was really blown away. I was really blown away.
SPEAKER_02I had to go home and look at look up the plot of the play that they put on.
SPEAKER_03Ah, okay. Did it did like the Black Parade for Dummies look it up?
SPEAKER_02Basically, they they they set it in this uh fictional Eastern European country, and there's this dictator. He gets uh My Chemical Romance, who's playing the part of a band called the Black Parade, to be the national band of this uh fictional country, and then they kill him mid-show. I hope this is I hope no one was planning to see this. I'm spoiling the whole play. Uh they kill him mid-show, and then the singer becomes the next emperor, and uh and then by the end of the show, he gets murdered by a dancing clown. The entire blood and the entire stage catches fire. Yes. I've never seen pyrotechnics like that. That's awesome.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean it was somebody was like, There was a man on fire on fire walking across the stage.
unknownDamn.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I know, and like at one point I'm just like, well, they they seem like they're not gonna die. Like they they seem chill about it, but I mean, if I was surrounded by as much fire as they were surrounded by, you know, I would I would definitely be freaked out.
SPEAKER_03So this had to be the festival with the most characters on stage I've seen because you know, we had Eddie with Iron Maiden running around. I did did catch a some of their set. Uh I was watching Einstein Kills from a tent, but it was on video. They had a terrifier figure that also had a Colonel Sanders costume killing people with a bucket of chicken. Uh yeah, we had uh, let's see, there was another um uh another band that had some sort of character on stage at one point. I don't know. And then, you know, you there's no way you can see even a third of the bands, so who knows what else was going on. I did see a duet, uh Black Vale Brides, I believe, didn't know much about them. They had a huge crowd on the secondary stages, but it ended with a duet, and that song ended with the singer of the band and the female singer had joined making out on stage. Oh my god.
SPEAKER_02And uh Guar was there this year, right? Yes, so they always had theatrical production.
SPEAKER_00Well, and also there's Mac Sabbath.
SPEAKER_02Tell us what Mac Sabbath is.
SPEAKER_00They uh are dressed up in you know, the McDonald's and characters, and they sing Black Sabbath, you know.
SPEAKER_02That's the best part.
SPEAKER_03They played Z Bar before, too.
SPEAKER_02They've been here having them. Yes. So which ones of the McDonald characters were were there? I mean all of them or Grimace?
SPEAKER_00Grimace?
SPEAKER_03Not the drummer he didn't involve it.
SPEAKER_00There's like the uh Robert McDonald. Um who else was there?
SPEAKER_02Hamburglar? One's name's Birdie. Oh, I think she's the she represents the chicken on the menu.
SPEAKER_00Do you know what's funny? I have a little from a McDonald's toy. I have Bertie in a car.
SPEAKER_02That's funny.
SPEAKER_00Like it's a roll rolling toy.
SPEAKER_02And they play Black Sabbath songs. I think that's awesome.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I was sad I missed them, but as I was walking in, I saw them being on it on a uh golf cart. You know, I'm like, back Sabbath!
SPEAKER_03It's like a real life happy meal happening.
SPEAKER_00It was really excited.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Um I thought you were I thought you had left work early to go to that show, so I'm sorry you didn't see it. Yeah. Did you a lot of it was just heat, man? It was tough getting out there. They played early on Thursday, which was a very hot day.
SPEAKER_00So and we parked pretty far away, so it's like, you know, it just takes a little bit longer to walk in the heat. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um, all right, well, let's see. Now let's turn over to Bourbon and Beyond because that is what's coming up this weekend. And I don't know, are you guys excited for Bourbon and Beyond? What are you looking forward to?
SPEAKER_00I'm looking forward to on Friday seeing the flaming lips and the violent films, which is like one of my favorite bands. I'm pretty excited about that one. Also, uh Counting Crows, that's on Sunday. And Joan Osborne is also Sunday.
SPEAKER_03I'm uh this isn't the lineup for me, to be honest. I like the for one, it's gonna be delightful weather, so that's gonna be great. Hanging out with Bourbon and Beyond is more like the hangout with friends festival for me than like the music festival usually. Uh this can vary from year to year. The band I would most like to see, I'm not gonna get to see because it's on Thursday during the day and we have an event uh tomorrow. Uh that's cheap trick. Um, but I am looking forward to Sunday because it will be like seeing a long day. Allison mentioned Counting Crows. Um, there are other kind of that mid 90s, uh mid to late 90s bands like tonic and stuff like that. Um they play really early though. So um, but the heat won't be a factor. Uh so I don't know. I just kind of will uh sometimes that's just as good as you're just like, I'm just gonna wander to stage and see what they sound like, see what this band sounds like.
SPEAKER_02So it's kind of like going to a Super Bowl party and your team's not in it, so you can just chill out and that is a perfect example.
SPEAKER_03Yes, yes, so it it'll it's fun regardless, and it will be much more relaxing temperature-wise. I got a fun quiz.
SPEAKER_02I'm gonna name some of these bands, and you guys tell me what their hits are. Okay. Poly Cole. Where have all the cowboys gone? That was an easy one. Yeah, starting you off easy. Um, let's see here. Amos Lee. Blank. Uh he has a song called Sweet P. That was really good. Uh Better Than Ezra.
SPEAKER_03Good's one of them, right? That's the only one, right? Do you know the Norm McDonald joke from uh Saturday Night Live weekend update? On the pop charts today at number two was Ezra. And at number one, better than Ezra. I knew exactly where that joke was going. Our Lady Peace. I can't remember song titles, but I know they're Canadian. And I saw Our Lady Peace open for Skidrow and Van Halen in like '99.
SPEAKER_02I thought they were a little heavier. Like, not heavy, they're rock, but they're like radio rock. But yeah.
SPEAKER_03They're like in that 90s radio rock, like polished radio rock type stuff. I and this is a dumb fact I remember was the only time I've ever seen a drummer play with his back to the crowd. I've seen side views. It was like he had maybe stage fright, and so he faced his back was to the crowd. Yeah. I don't know if he still does that or if it's the same drummer. Joan Osborne.
SPEAKER_00I don't know what the name of the song is, but like, what if God was one of us?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. I think that's the name of the song. That's the name of the song. It's what it is. What if God was one of us? Portugal the man. Not a 90s band.
SPEAKER_03You know them better than me. I don't know. I love Portugal the Man. Yeah. I don't I don't dislike them, I just don't know song titles. Um that's another thing. In Spotify, now, I mean, and they were before Spotify, but in the Spotify age, I don't know song titles.
SPEAKER_02Uh, this is an easy one. Counting Crows.
SPEAKER_03I mean, you've got a bunch of them. Well, I was yeah, we were talking about Long December earlier. But yeah, they have like they're gonna be that's gonna be like a set of hits. Yeah. So Mr. Jones is on the book. Mr.
SPEAKER_02Jones, obviously. And then uh yeah, they had a bunch. Um, all right, anyway, that's enough of my quiz. Unless you got impromptu quiz, though. Yeah, unless you guys want to name a Dave Matthews band. No.
SPEAKER_00No, no, thank you.
SPEAKER_02Oh, you guys have probably been to other festivals. What are some things that you feel like these two can learn from those?
SPEAKER_00Uh you know, I've these are two of the biggest festivals I've ever been to. I've been to small, you know, two-day festivals and they're so tiny. I I love them and I think they're so well run. And I I really do love them. Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I I will put in a plug for one thing I really like that my buddy who came who from who's a big music fan, but he'd never been to this these either of the lemmer festivals here. What was revolutionary, and maybe other places did this, but certainly Lollapalooza did not do it in Chicago, and Forecastle did not do this. Um, two of the other big ones I've been to um is you know, the the side-by-side stages. So you can you don't have if you want to see a band on one of the main stages and then the band right after it, you don't really have to move if you don't want to. Yeah. Um, that's great. I would say that um the footprint at the Expo Center works. For as a local, I preferred the waterfront festival because it was just there was stuff around that you could leave and go outside and do, and it was easy to get in and out of when Forecastle was at the waterfront. You could park a few blocks away, walk, go in and out, uh, go get it, get something to eat somewhere. I get it, it's a different thing. Um, the Expo Center footprint lends itself well. Um, and if you know now, like Alice and I do, like our kind of way around the festival, um, you know, you can you if you're willing to walk a little bit, you can park for free. Um people come from out of town though don't know that. Um, you know, they don't know that there's street parking out there. So sometimes they get they complain because they're in you know in this parking mess or the Uber drop-off or whatever. So I could see that being difficult if you're coming from out of town. I don't really know how you fix that at the expo center. Um, but if you're kind of a vet at it, um there are ways that you know you can sort of maximize your experience.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I would agree. I mean, I understand why they have the festival where they have it because it is very accessible for parking. I mean, there's tons of parking over there. Uh it's easy interstate access. I can see why they want to do it there, but um and the indoor space availability helps. Yeah, but and downtown. it I mean like the waterfront park I don't know the square footage comparison but it's like this elongated space rather than a square space so it's like um it seems like it would be difficult to have anything that big at Waterfront Park.
SPEAKER_03I don't think they could do it there. And also then the the flooding risk. I mean that's you know and that's what chased them out of Champions Park. Yeah. So like I think for all things considered it's a great place to have it. It's just there are some drawbacks to getting in and out. Once you're out and you know a few blocks away it's you're fine but it's just that getting in and out sometimes. And I know that you know I've seen some out of towners that have done the tar you know if you're staying downtown you can hop on a tark bus for pretty cheap get there. That's a that's a great advantage.
SPEAKER_02All right food and drink recommendations out there.
SPEAKER_03I mean what are some local businesses we're seeing out there I saw like Cask Southern um kitchen uh pizza lupo uh what else in season there's yeah that was a bizarre in seasons there which was like great yeah yeah and uh that Bayes bakery so you know it was it's nice to see some of the local if there was any locals out there oh yeah there's a lot I mean there are obviously like Island noodles is a they go to festivals all over um they're kind of a festival legend um but there are good there's if anyone doesn't think there's a local presence there they're crazy there's um Alison mentioned I actually had cask on Sunday that's what I ate um my I will plug this okay preface that with people complain about the prices I got I got my meal which was two sliders chips for 18 bucks which isn't cheap but it also is like sometimes when I go out for lunch in downtown Louisville it's $15. My buddy splurged on the one thing he bought and it was a steak sandwich from Alchemy which is a local restaurant as well and I had a little bit of it and it was $38 and I think it might have been worth $38. It was that good. It was like insanely good. So if they're there for Bourbon Beyond and you want to splurge it's like this sliced flank steak on a hoagie with like Mexican cheese and it was phenomenal. Local ice cream like Alison said Bays was out there saw them um uh the oh uh Claffe Cafe Classico was selling eight dollar empanadas a couple empanadas for 16 bucks maybe not a bad deal I think that's probably where my husband got his and he said they were really good. Yeah so there is a local presence um one thing that you know would be awesome in general is I know next this coming weekend we're gonna have a lot of bourbon out there um and um in the past I think they've had some local beers I did not see any local beers at louder than life yeah at all I did I think I looked at the menu and it was uh it was just some national bourbons so yeah it would be good to have some local beers out there whatever local beers we have left in this town or at least some from Lexington maybe yeah get uh it'd be awesome to have like Milewide or atrium out there yeah yeah um let's see you guys have both covered these festivals for years so give me your most memorable louder than life or Bourbon and beyond experience or band performance yeah I'll start I so la I'll just go first to last year um at Bourbon and beyond I'd never seen Rylo Kylie they Rylo Kylie sorry they were a bucketless band for me they'd broken up but didn't know if they were gonna come back and play and they did I just you know obviously would like to see them in a longer set but that was phenomenal they were on one of the smaller stages and and you know I kind of prefer the sound on the smaller stages um and then I'll go back I'd seen Pearl Jam before but Pearl Jam's set at um I guess it was was Bourbon right um when it was on the old footprint there were so many people there and the set was so good and I'm not like I'm not a like I like Pearl Jam.
SPEAKER_00They're not my favorite band but I just thought the set was and I don't I think you were like you're not a huge fan and you thought yeah I really that I was gonna say that that's probably that bourbon and beyond it was it was that was a pretty awesome I think lineup anyway was that the year that Alanis Morris set could be was there I can't remember but it was it I yeah I am I sat with my niece and it was I don't know we were so far back we were so far back and there were so many people there and it was it was amazing.
SPEAKER_03Yeah I think I slept I definitely slept on Pearl Jam but um maybe I shouldn't have it sounded like it was a great show like I and I'm a like especially if I've seen a band or like just you know this weekend it was heat and being tired but I often jet before like the the headliner's done to beat the crowd that sort of thing I did not leave before Pearl Jam was done that night. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Uh I'll say um I it it's probably that my chemical romance show it was that crazy but uh recency bias recency bias uh throw in another one uh I saw the killers a few years ago oh that was a good one it was yeah it was really good and um one of the fun things that happened was there was a fight in the middle of it and the band was so professional they just stopped playing and then just sat there and talked while security went and broke up the fight and hauled the two troublemakers out or whatever. Yeah. And I just thought that was like very stand up of them to be like we're not gonna encourage this like we'll get back to this in a minute.
SPEAKER_03Pearl Jam had to stop their set too because of a medical emergency type thing and like Eddie Vetter just sort of bantered with the crowd until it was resolved and so yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um but uh all right uh one more just for fun uh what uh what t-shirts did you bust out for this festival or alternatively what are some fun t-shirts that you saw out at the festival that keep in mind this is a family friendly podcast so I on one day I wore an old t-shirt from when I worked at WLCV radio 570 a.m if you're near us you can hear us uh still got it was like we were just like on in a couple of the U of L uh campus buildings that's all you could really hear us.
SPEAKER_03It was like four buildings but it was so I wore a t-shirt from you know the early 90s that was one of the that's awesome you still have that I know I uh wore like I did not go with the black look because it was hot uh but on Sunday I wore my um Bogarts which is a venue uh club in Cincinnati that's been around forever and one guy in the crowd just said hey is that place still open I'm like yeah they still book bands and then he's like can I get a selfie with you he'd seen a show there a long time ago and then I was in the media area and a a guy who uh was from Nashville also said Bogarts is that place still open and he's like I was in bands like early early in my life like he like was in touring bands younger now he had told me he uh helped build the websites for Wimmer but he was like we play our our band played there but I I didn't know if it was still around I'm like yeah it's and he's like remind me where it is again and so I got a lot of people asking me questions about Bogarts and the day before I wore my old ratty sort of Deer Creek music center shirt and someone was like oh cool shirt I love that you know I used to go there too so um I did try to you know wear music related things even though they weren't they were gray.
SPEAKER_02Yeah I don't have a lot of band t-shirts but I was in Japan a few years ago and I found this shop that had a guns and roses t-shot from when they played in Kobe Japan and so I was like I gotta bust out. When else am I gonna wear a guns and roses t-shirt other than louder than life so I busted that out for the festival.
SPEAKER_00Uh best t-shirts I yeah I can't probably say yeah there was a lot of funny ones let me put it that way funny the people what are gross yeah the people watching out there is is tops now I did buy a t-shirt okay well I bought two t-shirts because I had to buy one for my youngest daughter but so they were $54 for baby metal but I did get at least you're helping baby metal.
SPEAKER_02Yes that was that was an awesome baby metal's gonna have to go to college sometime. Raising a baby metal isn't it's $300,000 now I hear well speaking of money we'll go ahead and get a word from our sponsors at Baird and we'll be right back after that and we'll give you something to think about.
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SPEAKER_02Discover the bare difference visit rwbaird.com All right well uh we are back and uh let's uh wrap things up here and give our listeners a few more things to think about before they depart. Um Allison why don't you go first?
SPEAKER_00Okay I'm gonna talk about Louder Than Life in Bourbon and beyond in the festivals because just think about how many people are from out of town coming into the city.
SPEAKER_02I just think that is it's just amazing to really think about and uh yeah yeah I hope we make a good impression I hope so it has to pretty much rival Derby and the amount of people coming from out of town maybe more yeah and where Derby is like this luxury event like this is definitely uh a very approachable economically you know so a lot of people can go it's not cheap but like if you pick or choose or buy early and save up you can do it.
SPEAKER_03They do payment plans I know so yeah. All right Jay how about you go next I'm gonna stick with the music theme as well um as I'm going to a local show tonight uh not a local band show but a club show tonight for a touring band at Whirling Tiger and I'll tell a story that I went to see uh a band called Rat Boys who are kind of getting popular uh earlier this year at Zanzibar and it sold out they've played there before and this is the first time they'd sold out Zanzibar. The singer Julia is from Louisville she went to high school here now they live in Chicago but she's like hey you know from the stage she's like I don't know if you know this but like Louisville's not the best touring city. It's tough to get people out to club shows. And she's like I'm just telling you that's how it is so it's great that you all came out and sold out our show. So just a reminder for folks that there are shows every night around town and local venues um all around so support uh support local music but also local venues that have touring bands come in because um the festivals will be around for a few days but those places will be around all year.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And I'll uh I'll pick one that's not music related um and that is the news today that Yum Brands is putting their name on uh PC Tower. They're gonna put a sign on PNC Tower uh which I think is great. You know I'd kind of wondered you know about Yum's commitment to Louisville uh you know with the a lot of things moving to Texas and that sort of thing. So um and and with their selling their property and now leasing property instead. So this is a good sign I guess that uh that they are going to be committed here at least for uh for the time being uh putting their name out there on this uh this uh building and what did you call it Shay I don't want to steal your joke the PMC PNCM Center yeah um I guess we'll see if uh see how many good but basketball games we can play in the lobby of that building anyway that is our show uh if you like what you hear please consider subscribing to the Access Louable Podcast on any of your favorite podcast services or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and plenty of others. Thank you very much Allison thank you Shay thank you Baird for the support and everyone listening to us out there we'll see you next time bye